The Federal Government is looking to fund better ways of using Murray-Darling water.

A $10 million funding package has been announced, which is aimed at finding what has and has not worked over the last few years of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

The newly-announced, six-year-long project will provide a better understanding of the ways environmental watering can improve river, wetland and floodplain health.

The research will also support an important assessment of floodplain vegetation watering requirements in the Northern Basin.

“The ability to gauge the impact of different river and land management practices on river systems across the Basin is crucial to informing environmental watering decisions,” said Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment Senator Simon Birmingham.

“This collaborative research project will be coordinated regionally by the Wodonga and Mildura based Murray-Darling Freshwater Research Centre's, which will be undertaken with other research organisations and government agencies working in the Basin.

“Having spent billions of dollars recovering water for environmental purposes it is critical that it is used as effectively as possible. Their research will help to ensure taxpayers get maximum value from environmental watering decisions.

“Better knowledge will also provide an understanding how pressures such as invasive species, polluted runoff and reduced vegetation cover affect the ongoing health of water-dependent ecosystems in the Basin,” Senator Birmingham said.

The Murray-Darling Freshwater Research Centre will coordinated allocations of the $10 million fund. It is also partnered with La Trobe University, CSIRO and the Murray-Darling Basin Authority.